Talking about issues

This past weekend, I joined about 400 other Long Islanders at the first annual SAVE: Long Island Forum, held at the UpSky Long Island Hotel in Hauppauge.

SAVE: Long Island is a group started by two dear friends of mine, Gigi Bowman, a candidate for New York State Senate’s fifth district, and Ed Weaver, chairman of the Suffolk County Libertarian Party, in order to educate Long Islanders on issues that affect all of us, from the decline of small business to the dangers of pharmaceuticals and the influence of smart meters.

The event kicked off on Friday evening with a debate by legendary economists Bill Still and Robert Murphy. The room was packed with people learning about economics and the monetary climate in this country. Their debate was followed by a Q&A.

Saturday was the blockbuster day. From sunup to sundown, the day was packed with expert speakers in their respective fields. The list included Charlotte Iserbyt, who served as the senior policy adviser in the Office of Educational Research and Improvement for the U.S. Department of Education during the first term of President Ronald Reagan. She spoke about Common Core Education and how it is influencing our children.

Also speaking was legendary author G. Edward Griffen, known for his classic “The Creature from Jeckyll Island.” He informed us about the United Nations’ Agenda 21.

Sherrif Richard Mack spoke about the Second Amendment, and Kevin P. Miller gave an amazing talk on “big pharma.”

Kristen Meghan, a former U.S. Air Force Bio-Enviornmental Engineer-turned-whistleblower, educated us on what the government is spraying in our skies, and Josh Tolley, a nationally syndicated radio talk show host and small business expert, spoke to Long Islanders about why small businesses are so important, and what we need to do to keep them thriving. There was a fracking expert, an alternative health expert and many, many more speakers.

The event was amazing. On Sunday morning, each and every speaker from the event gathered for a breakfast panel, where the goal was to discuss and formulate solutions to the problems we all face in this ever-changing world, and especially here on Long Island.

I was so honored and privileged to have gotten to attend this event. I met some revolutionary people, and learned more about how to work within our community to affect positive change. It is so very important that we all take the time to understand these issues, and become as educated as possible as to what is going on in our communities. It was an empowering experience.

If you would like to see the event and its speakers, it’s all been chronicled on YouTube, or you can check it out here.

Tracy Diaz is a relationship manager at Town & Country Dental Studios. Follow her on Twitter @tracybeanz.